Betting agencies keen to make operations legal in India

	IS Bindra: "Whats wrong in legalising the activity in such a way that it's a win-win situation for the government, the punters and the stakeholders?" © Getty Images

Leading international betting agencies, including Ladbrokes and Betfair, are keen to help in a campaign to make sports betting legal in India and have approached a senior Indian Premier League official with offers on that front. An estimated US$ 2 billion is believed to ride on illegal cricket bets for each international match in India.

"There has been an informal approach from Ladbrokes, and an official offer from Betfair, to develop a blueprint for legalised sports betting operations in India," IS Bindra, a member of the IPL's governing council, told Cricinfo. "According to estimates, over $ 2 billion is being bet illegally on international matches in India. So what's wrong in legalising the activity in such a way that it's a win-win situation for the government, the punters and stakeholders?"

Ladbrokes and Betfair are both based in the UK and are well-known sports betting agencies with offices across the world. And Bindra said that there has been a renewed interest "from various parties" on legalising sports betting since the high-profile multi-national, multi-million-dollar IPL began on April 18. In fact, Ladbrokes has started a separate betting section on the IPL with odds offered on each game and key performances. Bindra, who is also the ICC's new principal advisor-designate, has been at the forefront of a campaign to legalise sports betting in India, where the activity is a criminal offence.

Bindra said he had discussed a possible blueprint for legalised betting in detail with senior Betfair officials through a recent conference call arranged by Manoj Badale, the UK-based co-owner of the IPL's Jaipur franchise. "We want to build public opinion on this issue before we approach the government with any kind of a proposal or request.

"Imagine what the money can do for the game if it's legally available. It will only help in protecting the fair name of the game. My personal opinion is betting should be legalised," Bindra said.

Bindra, the former BCCI president, said that legalised betting would be the "prescription medicine for preventing the disease" of match-fixing and corruption in cricket. "There have been a lot of efforts to find a solution to match-fixing and such corrupt practices. I think this is the solution -- make betting legal," he said.

The far-reaching influence of illegal betting in India was exposed in 2000 when Delhi police blew the lid off the game's biggest match-fixing scandal by exposing an alleged nexus involving Hansie Cronje, the former South Africa captain, Mohammad Azharuddin, the former India captain, and a London-based Indian bookie identified as Mukesh Gupta. Cronje and Azharuddin were banned for life while police are yet to trace Gupta. Last year, Marlon Samuels, the West Indies allrounder, faced a probe by WICB over alleged contact with an Indian bookie in Nagpur before a one-day game between the two countries.